


someone else (someone good)

by paravin



Series: last to see the light [8]
Category: Destiny (Video Games)
Genre: Abuse, Friendship, Gen, Humiliation, Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Torture
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-03
Updated: 2021-02-03
Packaged: 2021-03-14 05:15:34
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,552
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29165568
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/paravin/pseuds/paravin
Summary: As much as the Guardian wants to help Crow, he can’t help but feel like he’s constantly making things worse.
Relationships: The Crow & Male Guardian (Destiny), The Crow/The Spider (Destiny)
Series: last to see the light [8]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2180733
Comments: 8
Kudos: 42





	someone else (someone good)

**Author's Note:**

> in the eternal conflict between ‘me not wanting to write an OC’ vs ‘me wanting to write about the Guardian realising how much Crow’s life sucks’, occasionally the latter wins and fic like this happens. this is still very much Crow-focused though and I will retreat back to NPCs soon.
> 
> please heed the warnings - there’s one brief instance of noncon (thx Spider) in the latter half.

“Man, I kinda like the guy.”

“I never would have guessed.”

Ghost’s voice is heavy with sarcasm and Vash offers him a finger in response as he settles on top of one of the buildings lining the Shore. “Funny.”

Ghost hovers smugly at his shoulder, shell glittering in the ragged sunlight. “See, I told you we should be nice to him. Aren’t you glad you didn’t just shoot him in the face like you wanted to?”

“I mean, me shooting him in the face was how we ended up here,” Vash points out, letting his legs dangling down as he lobs a grenade in the direction of some dregs. “The old him, at least. But I guess it’s a fair comment. Would definitely have been harder to build a good working relationship afterwards.”

“And you would’ve felt bad,” Ghost prompts.

Vash sighs. “And I would’ve felt bad.” He lets his heels knock against the metal in frustration. “I don’t get it. Uldren was such an _asshole_ but Crow…”

“He’s very different,” Ghost agrees. “He may be new to the Light but he’s smart.”

“And nice,” Vash says in disbelief. “And polite and compassionate and-”

He scowls when Ghost’s iris shifts into the shape of a heart. 

“Ugh, not like that,” he says, swatting at him. “It’s just weird to see him like this, that’s all. Especially compared to Uld-”

Ghost makes a urgent shushing noise, bobbing in front of him as he looks down at the entrance to Spider’s lair. “He’s on his way.”

Vash hops his way down off the roof as Crow emerges and he lets out a relieved sigh when he sees Glint gliding along behind him. “Oh, thank fuck.”

Crow jumps at the greeting and blinks up at him in surprise from beneath his hood. “You’re still here?”

“Well, yeah,” Vash says. “We got a hunt to finish, right? Or I guess technically a hunt to restart and complete without me fucking it up this time.”

Glint’s shell twists in confusion. “You want to try again?”

“Mostly we were sticking around to make sure Spider didn’t explode you,” Ghost says. “You both sounded nervous when he called you back in.”

Glint and Crow exchange looks and Vash tries to ignore the jolt of unease as he says, “It was just a slip-up, right? Spider wouldn’t really blow up your ghost for that, would he?”

“He hasn’t yet,” Crow admits, “but I have no desire to push our luck.”

There’s a tightness to his movements as he turns to head back to the cryptolith, and Vash falls into step beside him as Ghost says, “We’re really sorry about that. We weren’t expecting that high-value target to be so distracting.”

Crow shrugs. “It’s fine.”

“It’s not fine!” Glint whispers, more to Crow than to anyone else. “He-”

“It’s fine,” Crow says again, more forcefully, before catching himself. “Spider’s displeasure was manageable. We just have to do better next time.”

Vash frowns. “Was he mad about it? I know he’s kind of an asshole but if he’s docking you pay or something for it, we can cover it. We’re not exactly short on glimmer.”

Even beneath the hood, he sees the smirk on Crow’s face as he says, “Don’t worry, Guardian. He doesn’t dock our pay.”

“He’d have to actually give us pay to be able to dock it,” Glint mutters. 

Vash does a double-take. “Wait, he doesn’t pay you? At all?”

“He provides room and board,” Crow says, giving Glint a sharp look as he presses on towards the site of the lure, “and we can keep twenty percent of any supplies we find to put towards equipment and weapon maintenance.”

“He takes _eighty percent_ of your loot?!”

“Baron Spider has been more than generous,” Crow says with confidence, although Vash doesn’t know if that certainty is for his benefit or for Spider’s spies. “He took us in when we had nothing. We still rely on him for protection.”

“Protection?” Vash echoes, incredulous. “I don’t think it counts as protecting if he’s the one holding the detonator!”

He doesn’t miss the way Crow puts more distance between them when he raises his voice, hiding his face under his hood.

“I didn’t just mean Glint,” Crow says tightly. “Being beaten to death by Guardians every time you show your face is even less enjoyable than it sounds.”

Vash’s outrage on Crow’s behalf quickly cools to pity and as they reach the cryptolith, he moves in front of him. “I know. And I get that this arrangement might have some advantages but it just sounds…” _like slavery._ “unfair.”

Crow’s eyes flicker with something he can’t read but he turns away before Vash can say anything further. “We should get back to the hunt, Guardian. Spider is eager to see my previous failure rectified. I’ll be waiting when you’re ready.”

He heads off to his sniper’s perch, Glint trailing in his wake, before Vash can even point out that the failure of the previous hunt was definitely not Crow’s fault.  


———

  
“Well,” Ghost says, “that could’ve gone better.”

“You think?” Crow’s unconscious body is heavy against Vash’s shoulder. He grits his teeth as he sinks carefully to his knees in the shallow water that laps at the shores of the Dreaming City, lowering Crow down with him. “It’s not like I knew he was right next to the screebs.”

“I did notify you of his position,” Glint says at the same time as Ghost chimes in, “I tried to warn you.”

“Okay, yes, thank you,” Vash huffs. “We all agree I’m an idiot. Can we please focus on making sure Crow isn’t dead? Or making sure he _is_ dead and can be revived if that’s the better option?”

Glint and Ghost’s lights overlap as they scan his body and Vash tugs his helmet off to get a better look at the sight of the dark ether splattered across Crow’s clothes. The explosion seems to have caught his upper body on the right side, searing through the fabric of his shirt and the leather of his gauntlet with equal efficiency, and Vash gathers water in his cupped hands to pour it over the ugly marks left on Crow’s skin.

“We should take that off,” Ghost advises. “I think it’s the blast that knocked him out, not the ether burns. Without his armor, it should be easier to clean the wounds.”

Glint flits anxiously at Crow’s side, offering tips and techniques on how to remove the armor as easily as possible. The full sleeve covering his left arm is a step too far but with some maneuvering Vash manages to toss Crow’s cloak, gauntlet and body armor into the water to clean off any lingering ether. 

His shirt is already a lost cause and despite Glint’s noise of protest, Vash has no qualms about tearing the fabric to allow access to the injuries on Crow’s arm and shoulder.

It’s honestly better that he thought. The burns are shallow but vivid, purpling patches splashed across Crow’s skin from where the dark ether seeped through his clothes. Vash pours water over them as best he can, looking up at Ghost for confirmation. “This should do it, right?”

“I think so,” Ghost says. “I haven’t had a lot of experience with these wounds though. Usually you just die to screebs.”

Vash sighs. “Thanks, buddy.”

Ghost pauses, running his scanner over Crow’s shoulder. “Hold on, I think there’s something else here.”

“Where?” Glint zooms in, parking himself above Crow’s head. “I don’t think it’s anything. He’ll be fine now — I can wait with him until he wakes up.”

“No, I see it,” Vash says, reaching out to brush the thin mark just visible around the curve of Crow’s shoulder. “Did he cut himself on something?”

The water laps over his calves as he shifts position, carefully lifting Crow onto his side, but he sucks in a breath when he gets a better view. “What the-”

Crow’s back is a mess. Dark welts of varying ages crisscross the broad planes of his shoulders, disappearing down beneath the torn shirt that still covers most of his back, and Vash scrubs a hand over his mouth in horror. “Holy shit.”

Ghost whirrs beside him, shell spinning. “I don’t know of anything that would leave marks like this during combat. Especially not when his armor’s intact.”

Vash doesn’t really need to ask but in spite of Glint’s guilty shiver, the words come tumbling out anyway. “What happened to him?”

“He’s okay,” Glint promises, moving down to try to shield Crow from view. “Really. It won’t affect his ability to assist on the hunts.”

“That isn’t what I asked,” Vash says, a little sharper than he means to. He takes in Crow’s injuries again, and his stomach turns as he pieces it together. “This was Spider, wasn’t it?”

Glint nods mutely. “He- He didn’t want anyone to know.”

Vash raises his eyebrows. “What, that he’s beating the shit out of his own enforcer?”

“Not Spider,” Glint says quickly. “Crow. He knows how important the hunts are — he didn’t want it to get in the way.”

Nausea rises in Vash’s chest and he sits back on his heels to catch his breath. He figured working for Spider was a crappy gig, especially with the apparent lack of pay, but he’s ashamed by how much this level of brutality has caught him by surprise.

“We won’t mention it,” Ghost says, nudging Vash’s shoulder. “Will we?”

Vash shakes his head, helpless. “We’ve gotta say something, right? Why the hell did Spider do this? Crow always seems so…” _broken in._ “obedient.”

“He doesn’t tolerate failure,” Glint says, dipping lower to huddle against Crow’s shoulder. “Crow works so hard but there’s always some reason for punishment — he says the wrong thing or doesn’t return fast enough or isn’t making enough progress on the hunts. Baron Spider hasn’t blown me up yet, not for minor infractions, but he has other ways to make his displeasure known.”

Vash’s mouth is dry. “He hurts him.”

“He has his men do it,” Glint murmurs. “I tried to stop them the first few times, I swear I did, but they have these arc weapons-”

“It’s okay,” Ghost says, moving to hover next to him. “I’m sure you did what you could.”

Part of Glint’s explanation tugs at a memory and Vash finds himself dreading the answer, even as he asks, “That time I got distracted and let the Wrathborn get away, did Crow take the heat for that too?”

Glint’s silence is as good as an answer and Vash drops his fist into the water with a hiss of anger. “Fuck.” He looks to Ghost. “This is bullshit — he can’t just-”

“Don’t do anything rash,” Ghost warns, floating up away from Glint. “You don’t want to make it worse for Crow.”

“Of course I don’t,” Vash snaps. Ghost’s eye narrows and he holds a hand up in apology, his anger dissipating into impotent frustration. “I just- I’m not good at problems that can’t be resolved by punching something. Or someone. Or some Spider, I guess.”

In the water, Crow starts to stir, and Vash looks between Ghost and Glint in panic. “Shit, what do we-”

“Go!” Glint urges. “I’ll tell him you didn’t see anything. Just please don’t mention this to Spider.”

Ghost’s plates twitch in a shrug when Vash looks over at him but he says on Vash’s nod, “Transmat firing.”

Vash knows it’s cowardice, running away instead of trying to help, but as he re-materialises on the other side of the bay in time to see Crow sit up and hold Glint close in cupped hands, cowardice doesn’t feel like the worst decision.  


———

  
When they stop by Spider’s lair a couple of weeks later, the throne room is empty.

“No,” Ghost says when Vash eyes a stack of flammable ether cannisters. “We agreed not to antagonise him.”

Vash sighs. “Not even a little bit?”

“No,” Ghost says again, firmer. “You know he’ll blame Crow for it.”

He isn’t wrong but Vash can’t resist giving a spool of wire a grumpy kick anyway as he looks around. “Where is he? I thought he just sat in his chair and made creepy comments all day.” 

Before Ghost can answer, he shouts, “Spider? You here?”

He’s answered by a grunt from the left of the throne room. The doors to Crow’s room are closed and Spider’s rasp barely makes it through the metal as he grumbles, “Busy with other matters.”

Vash scowls and keeps his voice low enough for just Ghost to hear, “What are the odds that these ‘other matters’ involve treating Crow like shit for no reason?”

“94.4 percent,” Ghost says. “I’ll get the door.”

Vash paces impatiently as Ghost works on the security protocol. The locks are surprisingly complex given the limited value of the equipment in Crow’s quarters, and Vash tries to calm his nerves by picturing Spider dying in various horrible ways as he waits for the doors to open.

He catches what sounds like a soft choking noise as the panel finally beeps to grant them access and Vash hurries forward, concerned, as he calls ahead, “It won’t take long. We’re just here to grab some-”

The grunt should have been enough to give it away. 

It’s guttural and satisfied, and when Vash thinks back on it later, it nearly makes him retch, but in the moment, he doesn’t piece it together quick enough. 

At least not until he rounds the corner to see Crow on his knees.

One of Spider’s hands is gripping his hair, forcing his head back at a sharp angle, and Vash can’t help but stare in horror at the greying slime splattered over Crow’s upturned face. There’s no doubt where it came from, not when Spider tucks himself back beneath his robes with a pleased sigh, and Vash can only gape in disgust as Spider glances over, smirking. 

“You Guardians, always so eager to intrude.”

“We…” Ghost starts, shell contracting in shock, but he trails off when Spider grasps Crow’s hair tighter, forcing him up higher on his knees. 

Crow winces, hands curling into fists at his sides, but he doesn’t try to pull free or even look in Vash’s direction as Spider chides, “Apologise to our guests for the indiscretion.”

Beneath the filth covering his face, Crow’s cheeks are dark with shame. The thick mess trickles down to soak into his cloak, globs of it clinging to his eyelashes as he chokes out, “I’m sorry, Guardian.”

His voice is ragged, as if it wasn’t clear enough already what Vash and Ghost walked in on, and Vash’s mouth opens and closes as he struggles to find anything to say to make this better.

Releasing his hair, Spider lets Crow drop to the ground as he says with a mocking wheeze, “Now, what did you need, Lightmonger? Bounties perhaps? Help with your hunts?”

Crow doesn’t move from where Spider shoved him, slumped and small in the towering shadow of his keeper. Vash doesn’t know whether he’s more furious at Spider for subjecting Crow to this or at himself for making an already intolerable situation so much worse.

“I- I should go,” he stammers, already taking a step back. He can’t look at Crow. “It can wait.”

Spider’s laughter follows him through the warren of tunnels as he flees.  


———

  
Vash tries to talk about it.

The next time he joins Crow for a hunt, he makes an attempt when he’s sure Osiris is no longer listening. He wants to offer comfort, to promise he’ll do his best to help him get away from Spider and to reassure him that he doesn’t think any less of him, but he barely gets two words out before Crow asks him not to talk about it.

Between the humiliation in his voice and the desperate little _please_ that accompanies the request, Vash can’t bring himself to force the issue. Glint is similarly reticent, begging Ghost to just focus on the job and not get them into any more trouble, all of which only serves to make Vash feels worse.

It’s only after the death of the High Celebrant, when Spider’s clumsy offer provides him with a viable escape route, that the weight of Vash’s failures begins to lift. 

Crow and Glint are stunned by the outcome, but when Crow asks why he would help them, Vash realises just how bad he’s been at conveying that he loathed every part of their situation with Spider. 

Nonetheless, late freedom is definitely better than no freedom, and as Vash clambers up into his ship to begin the journey away from Spider and the Shore, he figures this is a decent time to clear the air a little.

Crow and Glint are perched on the seats at the rear of the ship, with Glint practising his spins without the weight of the bomb while Crow watches in amusement. Vash takes a position against the lockers lining the wall as he says, nodding in Glint’s direction, “Nice moves there, little guy.”

Glint bounces happily. “It’s very good to be rid of those explosives.” He wiggles the flaps on one wing, testing his motion. “They were heavy!”

Crow reaches a hand up and Glint goes easily, nuzzling against Crow’s chest as he brings him in close. The astonished smile still hasn’t left Crow’s lips and his eyes shine beneath the hood as he looks up at him. “Thank you again, Guardian. We owe you.”

“Hey, this is as much your doing as mine,” Vash says. “Between your lures and your work with the High Celebrant, this is actually probably _more_ your doing. I just punch what I’m told to.”

Ghost slips away with a quiet whoosh, and Vash sits tentatively on the other end of the bank of seats as he says, “Look, I know you didn’t want to talk much about what happened the other week, and that’s fine, but now that you’re free, I-” 

Crow tenses and Vash swallows hard as he tries to barrel through the awkwardness, “I just- About what happened with Spider, I…”

Crow’s fingers tighten on Glint’s shell. He disappears in a shimmer of light as Crow nods, his smile fading. “Of course. You’ve certainly earned it.”

He slides to his knees with surprising grace. One hand comes to rest on the inside of Vash’s thigh and before Vash can even process what’s happening, Crow moves to cup him through his pants.

“What the- No!”

His knee catches Crow’s jaw in his scramble to get away and Vash curses under his breath as Crow falls back, blinking up at him in confusion. 

“Shit,” Vash says, reaching down to help him up. “I’m so sorry. Are you hurt?”

Crow is tense as Vash guides him back to a seat, but Vash can’t tell whether he’s bracing to deliver a blow or receive one as he watches him warily. 

“You don’t hit quite as hard as the High Celebrant,” Crow says, wiping blood from where his teeth cut into his lip. “I’m fine.”

“Good,” Vash says. He scrubs a hand through his hair, wincing when he clips his elbow on the lockers as he does so. “Look, I didn’t mean that the way it sounded. I just wanted to ask if you were okay, after Spider.” He gestures awkwardly to the seat he just vacated. “I don’t want that from you. Ever.”

“Oh.” Crow lowers his head in embarrassment, disappearing beneath the familiar cover of his cloak. “I thought-”

“I know,” Vash says, “I’m an idiot.” He crouches beside him, trying to get low enough to catch Crow’s eyes. “I didn’t know how bad it was with Spider. I mean, I picked up some of it over the last few months but I should’ve figured out the rest before I ended up walking in on you.”

Crow’s lips twist in a cold smile. “Spider’s careful when he needs to be. When he isn’t, it’s usually by design.”

Vash blinks. “He meant for me to see that?”

Crow gives a tiny shrug. “I think he felt I was getting ideas above my station. That was an efficient method of correction.”

Vash exhales through gritted teeth. “Holy fuck, I hate him.”

“I can sympathise.” 

The understatement tugs a bitter laugh from Vash and he reaches up to rest a hand on Crow’s shoulder as he says, “I’m not trying to replace him. You know that, right? I know claiming you as a fucking prize wasn’t exactly my most upstanding decision ever but I’m not about to keep you or anything.” 

Crow glances up past the folds of his hood, and Vash holds his gaze as he promises, “You’re free now. You don’t need to do anything like that again, with anyone. That includes me.”

Crow’s eyes dart over his face, clearly looking for the catch, but when he speaks again, it’s with dazed gratitude. “Thank you.”

With one last squeeze to his shoulder, Vash pushes himself back to his feet. “Don’t mention it.” 

His own lack of action over the past months still stings. Despite his relief at finally being able to help Crow gain his freedom, Vash can’t quite conceal his shame when he admits, “Trust me, it’s the least I could do.”


End file.
